guy123

Thanks for the responses. The idiot light on the dash goes off almost instantly when the car is started, so the oil pressure is building at a good rate. The readings I took were what the mechanical gauge showed, not what the sunpro shows. I realize that I'm probably splitting hairs here, I just want to do whatever I can to keep the car running for as long as possible. I guess I won't worry about the 9-10 psi at idle.

1996 Legacy L wagon 4eat, EJ-22. I have about 175,000 miles on the car now, and I just installed an oil pressure gauge- wish I had done it sooner. Anyway, the gauge is an electric Sunpro gauge, so not very precise. I tested the pressure today with a mechanical gauge to get some more precise numbers. With the oil at operating temp, I measured 9-10 psi at 700rpm idle, 22-23 psi at 1500rpm, 30 psi at 2000 rpm, and about 40 psi at 2500. Not sure how accurate the mechanical gauge is, but I was hoping it was better than the electric one. With good pressure at higher RPM, am I correct to assume that the low psi at idle is probably due to normal wear in the engine at this mileage? The oil pump is original, never replaced or serviced. I've been running 10W-30 since I bought the car at 110K, should I run something thicker? Or is this psi reasonable for the engine given it's age? Any thoughts you guys have would be awesome, thanks in advance.

I wanted to end the thread with an update: I replaced the duty C solenoid last weekend with good results. The whole job isn't difficult for someone decently-versed in mechanics, most of the work goes into taking apart simple components just to get to the tailshaft housing. The hardest thing I encountered was getting the tailshaft housing off after 16 years to service. I resorted to using a narrow flexible putty knife, tapping it into the space between the housing and the tranny to break the seal, then she came off. Nothing came apart or fell out... for those wondering what those mysterious items are that sometimes fall out: they are the parking pawl, the rod it mounts on, and the spring that retains it. Not a bit deal, just put it back in using pics found online as a guide if needed... just make sure it gets in properly or you won't have a park gear anymore, and probably worse. After a week of daily driving I have had no TCU codes, no binding, and great performance. I made a weekend of the project, doing maybe 5 hours each day, but I really took my time. This definitely beat paying someone else to do the work for the money saved and the peace of mind knowing it was done right. Thanks to everyone who helped me out with info, and to everyone else on the board that have posted on this topic before. I was able to go into this whole thing with a lot of info that really helped it go smoothly.

I wanted to add that I ran the FWD fuse test on a run when I was noticing binding... the binding is equal in both AWD and FWD, so it's definitely the solenoid. I'll go ahead and order the parts and hopefully have the new duty C in by next weekend.

Thanks for all of the info. After reading up on the subject, I'm going to go ahead and try the job myself replacing the Duty C. The car has 164,000 mi on it, and the TCU is consistently showing code 24 (Duty C solenoid) and no other codes. I swapped out the TCU with a good salvaged one just to make sure it wasn't the TCU, and it also is showing a code 24 and nothing else, so I am confident the Duty C is bad. I am getting some torque bind during some drives but not others, so I assume the solenoid is going in a out of functioning. Anyway, here's the question: Can I probably get by just by just replacing the duty C, or should I get the parts to replace the duty C, the clutch pack, and the extension housing (96 housing, no steel sleeve). I want to just replace the solenoid and get out of there, the idea of messing with the clutch pack worries me a bit. But I also don't want to have to tear into it again in 5k when something else goes bad. What are peoples' thoughts?? Thanks again for all the great help, I will be sure to keep the board updated with my progress. Also, does anyone know the part number for the extension housing? I have found the part numbers for everything else in other threads, just not the housing. Thanks.

Well, you just about hit it on the nose. Finally figured out the trick with pulling the codes and got a code 24 - Duty Solenoid C. This issue is so intermittent ( I started the car like 6 times or more today between work and them test driving it around after, and the AT Temp light flashed at only about 2 of the starts.) When I finally pulled the code it was a stored code, no a current code. Anyway, it is now throwing the code here and there, but with very little in the way of driveability issues... yet. I'm guessing this is something that it going to get worse sooner than later? I just want to know about how soon it might do that. I might do another drain and fill of ATF, but with two done in the last few thousand miles, I don't think bad fluid is the problem. Is there anything I can do, or do I start saving my pennies for the repair? I don't have the space or time to do the replacement myself at the moment, so I want to try to wait for a convenient time to take it into a shop. Can I ride on this issue for a while, or is it anyone's guess? I searched this stuff some already, but what is the usual cost of this replacement at the average shop? Thanks for all the help so far!

Thanks for the info. I managed to find a little bit more with some extra searches with different search terms, so with all of this I I'm on the right track. I just did a couple of drain and fills a few thousand miles apart, and the ATF has never been anything but clean, light, and sweet smelling like it should be. Maybe one more drain and fill for good measure? The AT Temp light has been flashing on some start ups but not others, so maybe it isn't even a big deal... I will try to figure out what sort of driving is causing it to throw the code.

Before I go any further, let me express that I have searched this topic extensively. I have found the diagnosis connector and the ground plugs, and have the info on the "secret handshake". I have a 96 Legacy L wagon automatic that is flashing 16 blinks of the AT Temp light just about every time I start the car. This started about 5 days ago while I was up in the mountains, but I am now back home to flatter ground. The only notable driveability issue is a SLIGHT shuddering when going around at a few miles per hour, like to pull into a parking spot of something. No other problems at speeds. I do notice that after coming to a stop and putting it in park, the shift change into park is a bit harder than it was just a week ago. I have checked for torque bind - tight turns over and over, varying speeds. No issues at all, everything is nice a smooth. So I have tried to pull the TCU codes. I grounded out the diagnosis connector, but nothing happened upon putting the key in ON or starting the engine. So I grounded it out and tried out the "secret handshake" method detailed here: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=117234&highlight=secret+handshake Still no response from the light, assuming I am doing it right. I am now resetting the TCU by disconnecting the battery to see if that changes anything. Can someone tell me definitively which method of code retrieval is applicable to my model year? (grounded connector, secret handshake, both?) I am pretty confused. Thanks.

I have a 1996 Subaru Legacy L Wagon, no anti-theft system, and power locks. So a few days ago I realized that my driver side door can be unlocked with anything. What I mean is, I can stick anything into the lock- a house key, mailbox key, screw driver, and the lock will unlock. More specifically though, the lock doesn't actually accept those items, tumblers inside reject the items and do not let them get inserted all the way. However, the lock just rotates freely. The wrong key need only be inserted about a quarter of a inch into the lock, and it will turn side to side, unlocking the car. This is a particular problem because the driver side door lock unlocks all of the other locks at once. I assumed that this will require the lock cylinder to be replaced. I attempted to order a new cylinder from subarugenuineparts.com only to receive an email back that they cannot ship these items due to "security and theft" concerns. Is there a way to repair the lock, or does the cylinder need replacing as I had suspected? If so, does anyone know of a place online to order a new one, or do I need to go to the dealer for it? Let me know, any thoughts are helpful. Thanks!

WUB-WUB-WUB. Brilliant. That sounds very much like what I think I'm experiencing. The rattling came up a little bit after the last tire-rotation I had. It may have been related to that but I thought I'd include it here just to be thorough. Any ideas on how long the bearing can last in the state it's in? I assume if it has lasted this long it's not going to suddenly fail completely, but I don't want to jeopordize any of my good parts like the CV axles that were replaced 2 years ago. If I can wait a few more weeks I'll have time to fix it. If someone else has another idea, please chime in, but thanks much for your help!

Hi everyone, It's been a while since I've posted on the board, mostly on account of how well my car's been running. I've been having an issue, though, with my 96 Legacy L wagon for a few years now, but it has just recently started getting noticeably worse. It began as a sound seeming to come from the front drivers side wheel, sort of like the sound you get when you drive at high speed over a rough patch of highway, only sort of pulsating... but it only seemed to be coming from that side only. The sound seemed to sort of reverberate up the drivers side A-pillar. This has been audible for the past couple years, but just recently it has gotten considerably louder. It's audible from outside of the vehicle now, from what I can tell while driving with the window down. It's been accompanied within the last few months by a rattling / jingling sound as I go over small bumps. The sound is sort or periodic, sort of pulsating. Seems to match how fast the wheels turn. Faster speeds = a faster pulsation. The sound is louder when I turn to the right at speed... I assume because this puts pressure on the drivers side wheel being on the outside of the turn. It basically goes away when I turn to the left. So I'm wondering what this could be. I'm thinking a front wheel bearing but I've heard that they give off a whurring sound. I've never had one go out before so I'm not really sure what to expect. The front CV axles were completely replaced about 2 yeas ago. Since this sound is coming from one side, I don't think it's from the front diff but who knows. Can anyone give me at least an idea about what this could be? Thanks for all your help.

My 96 Legacy a/t gets around 20-21 pure city, around 30 highway. My best was all highway on a road trip this summer in hotter weather- 32 mpg. I do mostly city driving and it kills me... i want to figure out how to get better mileage. For those curious, the car has no roof rack and I run 10w-30 all year.

Glad I could help.

Well I hope that with a little maintenance I won't need to clear coat, but if it were to start yellowing again I'd go ahead and do it. I didn't want to do it this time 1. because the headlights were still on the car and I didn't want to risk getting paint on something, even if it were taped off, 2. it's been raining off and on here which might put the paint in jeopardy, and 3. I'd be doing it in the parking lot here on campus. I agree that a coarser grit would have been appropriate for the amount of yellowing present though. I forgot to mention also that, while the kit was nice with everything included, you could probably do just as good a job by getting some sheets of sand paper and a bottle of plastic polish like the Mother's stuff and using those.

I thought I'd post this thread to provide people with some information on a way to restore their cloudy, yellowing headlights. I know this has been talked about tons, I got a lot of info from other threads. I just thought that people trying to do the same thing could benefit from my job. I didn't have much time to do the job, and didn't want to take the headlights out to clear coat them, so I decided to give the Permatex Headlight Lens Restoration kit a try just for kicks to see if it would help. I figured the $13.50 or so that I paid was worth a shot. The kit comes with 4 sheets of sand paper (1000, 1500, 2000, 2500 grits,) instructions, a pair of latex gloves (didn't need them,) a small cloth, and a bottle of "Plastic restoration polish." I didn't take a pic of both headlights before, so I'll use the passenger side headlight for demonstration. Here it is before: I know a lot of people have restored headlights different ways, and everyone has their own "best" way. I'm going to describe this process so that a newbie can do it, so forgive me if I state obvious things. Understand that this is simply one way to do this restoration and I will not pretend it's the best, it simply worked for me. Wetsanding/clear coating, toothpaste, brake fluid... all those other techniques exist and should be considered when deciding how you want to do your own headlights. I began wetsanding the lens beginning with the 1000 grit. I sanded for 25-30 min. with this one alone, and kept sanding until every imperfection was gone and the lens was a very uniform matte finish. The time it takes to complete this step will vary based on how bad your headlights are. You can tell it's almost time to move to a smaller grit when the water coming from the area goes from a yellowy milky fluid to a brighter white, more transparent fluid. The spent about 5-10 mins each with the 1500 and 2000 grits, then spent another 20 mins or so with the 2500 grit going horizontally for a few minutes, then going vertically for another few mins. I gradually let up on the pressure, and made sure it was liberally lubricated with water. The result was that by the end, I was basically keeping only enough pressure on the sand paper to keep it against the lens, no more. You can tell that the lens is almost smooth enough when the water starts to bead up on the lens rather than appear to be absorbed. After all the sanding was done, the headlights should look acceptably clear. That way, they'll be like glass when you polish them. Now it's polish time... it's basically like waxing a car, although I tried to press pretty hard on mine to really work out a good shine. I polished for about 10 mins each headlight, going over it once, buffing, then going over it again, and buffing. This whole sanding and polishing process took about 3 hours for both lights. The end result on the passenger side light, the same one pictured above, was this: I was very happy with the results. Here is another pic of the driver side headlight completed before I had begun on the passenger side- this is a good side-by-side comparison: And here Is the end result after both headlights were finished: I wanted to do this restoration mainly because my headlights looked like such crap all yellow and clouded, and I also figured my headlights were a little bit dimmer because of the discoloration. After doing the driver side lights I was able to see just how much dimmer the lights had been. Here is a picture of the lights shining on a fence about 8 feet in front of the car- Driver side light has been restored, the passenger side light has not: You can see that the focus on the light on the driver side is about twice as large as the passenger side. Not only that, but the driver side light projected at least twice as far with a much better intensity, I was amazed. I'd really recommend doing this, any method, to clean up your headlights. My headlights had dimmed so much it was almost becoming a safety concern. I'm not going to pretend that this is going to last forever though- once the sun comes out again and I start driving, the stuff that did this yellowing in the first place- UV rays, air pollution, etc, will begin the erosion again. I plan on applying Mothers Plastic Polish to my headlights whenever I wash the car, maybe a few times a year, to ensure that my results stay protected. I'm also going to start polishing the tail lights too to keep them looking good. I hadn't really considered this necessary until now, but this little project made me realize it's worth keeping those lights shining. Anyway, I hope this helps anyone thinking about doing this themselves. Below is a final pic of what is included in the package- keep in mind this was taken AFTER I was done: And just for fun here's a close up of the driver side: